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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28257135">connections</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/sureimiku/pseuds/sureimiku'>sureimiku</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Tales of the Abyss</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Introspection, Spoilers, dist and sync are mentioned, mentions of arietta's past</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:42:34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,508</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28257135</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/sureimiku/pseuds/sureimiku</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A look into the different relationships Arietta builds.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Arietta the Wild &amp; Asch the Bloody, Arietta the Wild &amp; Fon Master Ion, Arietta the Wild &amp; Largo the Black Lion, Arietta the Wild &amp; Legretta the Quick</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>connections</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/DisappearingMuse/gifts">DisappearingMuse</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written for the abyss discord's secret santa exchange!<br/>Happy holidays, Jenna!! I surprisingly got you in return haha  😂 you asked for Arietta content in general, so I wrote you that! I thought of the different interactions she has with various members of the cast. I hope you enjoy &lt;3</p><p>kudos and comments are always appreciated!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Commander of Special Operations should not be someone Arietta fears. They both work under Van’s orders, go out on missions together, partake in battles with each other. </p><p>Yet when she sees the spike of red hair swish at the corner of her eye, she can’t help but feel a twinge of fear. He’s only one year older than her, yet he possesses the maturity and aura a seasoned soldier should have. </p><p>One of the interactions she is not expecting comes on a day off, when she takes to spending her time in the kitchen. Maybe prepare some cookies for the other generals; sweets were never too present on the table. </p><p>The preparation process is tedious; some measuring cups are missing, so Arietta decides to use just one size. On top of that, the ingredient list is a little too long that it drives her a little crazy. Then she realizes there is something she is forgetting. Sugar? Eggs? Is she even using the right bowl? Did she preheat the oven?</p><p>Maybe it’s vanilla extract that she overlooked? </p><p>There are a handful of ingredients on the table, and it makes her head hurt thinking about what she could have forgotten, so she whisks away. </p><p>...And it does not turn out as expected. The batter is a darkish brown, rather stiff, and not the silky texture she had seen in the cooking book. In fact, it doesn't even look like cookie batter in the first place. </p><p>The sound of the kitchen door creaking open and a familiar deep voice startles her. "What are you doing in here?" </p><p>"Baking," replies Arietta. His presence already brings a tense aura, but the fact that Asch is known to excel in the kitchen frightens her a bit more. There's no telling what he would do; scold her? Tell her to throw the whole bowl away? Get out of the kitchen? And then he finally speaks: </p><p>“...Your bowl.” </p><p>“Huh?”</p><p>“Give me it.” </p><p>She readies for the sound of the bowl hitting the sink, its contents and her hard work (was it really?) being put to waste. </p><p>“Hm.” He thinks for a second and reaches for the carton half-open on the counter. “You forgot the milk.” </p><p>“Oh.” She watches as Asch works his magic and the batter looks much more decent. The dark brown color changes considerably to a lighter shade and the batter turns into a lacey texture, falling right off the whisk. </p><p>“Watch out next time.” The tone of his voice is gentle this time. He parts without another word, leaving the girl alone in the kitchen. </p><p>Asch could be a nice guy, under that scary frown. </p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Legretta reminds her of what a true commandant’s aide should be like. Being the first to formulate plans for ambushes, arranging only the most talented platoons of soldiers. Never once faltering and questioning Van’s ambitions. </p><p>It reminds her of the times she spent with Ion as his own guardian. </p><p>There is something Arietta notices after spending time with her, though: Legretta <em>does </em>have a motherly side. </p><p>One evening after a trip through the Inista Marsh, Arietta comes back absolutely <em>ruined.  </em>Her once bright locks of hair are dirtied and soaked, tangles running everywhere. </p><p>Ion had taught her a lot of things, but doing her hair was <em>not </em>on that list. </p><p>The blonde god-general is making her final runs for the night when she overhears bitter chatter from the bedroom. And for being one of the youngest members on board, Arietta <em>rarely  </em>complained; it was either Asch or Sync bickering. </p><p>The scene inside the bedroom looks like this: a distressed sixteen-year-old ripping away at her hair, several brushes sprawled on the floor. Most likely the ones she deemed unusable.  </p><p>“...What on earth are you doing?” Legretta starts, an obviously perplexed expression painted all over her face. “What happened to your <em>hair? </em>”</p><p>As much as Arietta wants to tell her to just get out and leave her alone, she manages to calm down and simply responds: “Inista Marsh. It rained before I got back.” </p><p>“Ah.” A moment of silence passes, Arietta quietly continuing at her work and trying to ignore the fact that such a dignified woman is staring at her with each passing second. </p><p>“Let me see.” Legretta gestures towards the bristled brush in her hand. Reluctantly, Arietta hands her it and tries to sit still on the bed. It turns out, Legretta is much better at this than Arietta would ever be. The tangles loosen up like magic. Several minutes or so later, her smooth pink locks are back to normal, no longer frizzed. </p><p>Arietta meekly thanks her, a bit embarrassed that someone like Legretta had to witness her commotion. </p><p>“Try to not ruin it next time, okay?” </p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Anise makes her blood boil. Makes Arietta want to wipe that dainty little smile off her face whenever she’s around Ion. </p><p>It pains her to see the same person who taught her to write and read at another’s side, with little chance of reverting back to the old days. </p><p>The day Anise took away all her happiness still lives hauntingly in her mind. </p><p>She had been practicing her handwriting, spelling out the names of her ligers and Ion. The letters were crooked and a bit messy, but she scribbled away nonetheless. She had seen how beautiful the handwriting of the Score was, the edges of the letters and symbols swirling and twisting. Ion would be happy if she improved, right? </p><p>The door easing open with a negative faced soldier was the last thing she expected, and the following words were uttered out:</p><p>
  <em> “You're being demoted.”  </em>
</p><p>When Arietta couldn’t make sense of what he was saying, and when she didn’t <em>want </em>to make sense of it, the soldier boiled it down for her: <em>“We have a new guardian to look after Ion now.”  </em></p><p>And then she had been kicked out of the cathedral, crying and clinging while she could, nothing but fury and rage enshrouding her entire body. The scene still sends chills through her body, makes her angrily curl fingers around her pink hair. </p><p>She has a home with the Oracle Knights now. She should be grateful, that she has a place to belong to after everything she held dear was yanked away from her clutches. </p><p>Yet, she can’t seem to ever relive the same kind of happiness Ion gave her. </p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Van treats her well. </p><p>Or, at least she thinks he does. </p><p>He is a skilled and upfront leader of the God-Generals, designating each of them their role in their assigned division. Has at least twice the amount of experience on the battlefield, wielding all sorts of fonic artes. </p><p>Van could be nice sometimes, though. The lunches he made tasted good, and the notes he left could be good-willed. He broke up the petty arguments Asch and Sync always got into, helped Arietta escape from Dist’s hour long explanations about his research. </p><p>He is someone Arietta can vent to, about how the world is unfair and how much Ion means to her. She tells him several things— how good the tea tasted, how comforting the Fon Master could be, how he was the sun on a rainy day. </p><p>And every time Van would just nod, reminding her that they had the same goal in mind; to take back the Fon Master from Anise and her party’s clutches. </p><p> </p><hr/><p> </p><p>Arietta wants to think Largo is the closest thing to a parental figure she will ever have. Aside from the ligers, of course. </p><p>Beneath the robust and serious demeanor and the rather bulky appearance he keeps up, he always makes an effort to check in on her. Make sure she’s doing alright after a long day. As one of the younger god-generals and still a child, many things could go awry for her. </p><p>And besides… he mentioned having a daughter before, didn’t he? He’s not as scary as Sync is, and <em> hell </em>, the boy is more than half his age.  </p><p>They had been preparing for their next ambush on board when his familiar hoarse voice spoke up. </p><p>“Arietta. Can you come here for a moment?” Without a word she obliged, standing meekly before Largo's desk. “Yes?” </p><p>Behind the desk, he pulls out a medium sized bag, a plain red color. Since when did Largo go shopping? </p><p>“I saw this at one of the merchant stalls in Chesedonia.” He pauses. “I thought you might like it.” </p><p>Inside the bag is something soft, and now a pink cheagle plush is sitting in her hands; her favorite color. </p><p>Arietta opens her mouth to say something but the wrong words come out instead. “I’m not a kid.” </p><p>Largo’s facial expression falls. “...Right.” </p><p>Arietta is not exactly good at thanking people. She notices the slight saddening from the older man and speaks up again: </p><p>“Thank you.” She bows her head and slips away without another word. And once she is out of the room the older man softly smiles. </p><p>Well, now she can imagine how Largo would be if his daughter were still by his side.  </p>
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